CAT Exam  >  CAT Questions  >  Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arit... Start Learning for Free
Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first x terms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?
    Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer?
    Verified Answer
    Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose ...
    Let us calculate the actual sum which Ram would have got if he did not have had made the mistake.
    We can use the formula to calculate the sum = 30/2 ​ (2(2) + (30 − 1)7)
    Thus the actual sum = 15(4 + 29 × 7) = 3105
    Excess sum calculated = 3210 - 3105 = 105
    Let last n terms be the terms where the common difference was taken as 14 instead of 7
    Thus 7 + 14 + ...n terms = 105
    n/2(2(7) + (n − 1)7) = 105
    n(n + 1)7 = 210
    Or 2 + n − 30 = 0 or (n + 6)(n − 5) = 0.
    Since n can not be negative, n = 5, Thus last 5 terms had incorrect common differece. x = 30 - n = 30 - 5 = 25
    x − 4 = 21 = 3 × 7
    Total 4 factors are there.
    View all questions of this test
    Most Upvoted Answer
    Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose ...
    To find the sum of an arithmetic progression, we can use the formula:

    S = (n/2)(2a + (n-1)d)

    where S is the sum, n is the number of terms, a is the first term, and d is the common difference.

    In this case, the sum of the arithmetic progression with a first term of 2 and a common difference of 7 is:

    S = (30/2)(2(2) + (30-1)(7))
    = 15(4 + 203)
    = 15(207)
    = 3105

    So, the sum of the first 30 terms of the arithmetic progression with a common difference of 7 is 3105.

    Now, let's consider the sum of the first x terms of the arithmetic progression with a common difference of 14. We'll use the same formula, but with a new common difference:

    S' = (x/2)(2(2) + (x-1)(14))

    We know that S' = 3210, so we can solve for x:

    3210 = (x/2)(4 + 14x - 14)
    3210 = (x/2)(14x - 10)
    6420 = x(14x - 10)
    6420 = 14x^2 - 10x
    14x^2 - 10x - 6420 = 0

    By factoring or using the quadratic formula, we find that the two possible values for x are x = 30 or x = -38. Since we can't have a negative number of terms, we discard x = -38.

    Therefore, the number of factors of x is the number of factors of 30, which is 8: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 10, 15, 30.
    Attention CAT Students!
    To make sure you are not studying endlessly, EduRev has designed CAT study material, with Structured Courses, Videos, & Test Series. Plus get personalized analysis, doubt solving and improvement plans to achieve a great score in CAT.
    Explore Courses for CAT exam

    Similar CAT Doubts

    Top Courses for CAT

    Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer?
    Question Description
    Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? for CAT 2024 is part of CAT preparation. The Question and answers have been prepared according to the CAT exam syllabus. Information about Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? covers all topics & solutions for CAT 2024 Exam. Find important definitions, questions, meanings, examples, exercises and tests below for Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer?.
    Solutions for Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? in English & in Hindi are available as part of our courses for CAT. Download more important topics, notes, lectures and mock test series for CAT Exam by signing up for free.
    Here you can find the meaning of Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? defined & explained in the simplest way possible. Besides giving the explanation of Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer?, a detailed solution for Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? has been provided alongside types of Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? theory, EduRev gives you an ample number of questions to practice Ram was asked to calculate the sum of an arithmetic progression whose first term was 2 and common difference was 7. The total number of terms was 30. He wrote down all the 30 terms in ascending order and then started adding from smallest number. After calculating the sum of first xterms correctly, Ram started taking common difference as 14 instead of 7 and ended up with sum of 3210. How many factors does x − 4 has?Correct answer is '4'. Can you explain this answer? tests, examples and also practice CAT tests.
    Explore Courses for CAT exam

    Top Courses for CAT

    Explore Courses
    Signup for Free!
    Signup to see your scores go up within 7 days! Learn & Practice with 1000+ FREE Notes, Videos & Tests.
    10M+ students study on EduRev